


subcutaneous

by fear_of_being_bitten



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alien Cultural Differences, Alien Rey, Alien Sex, Can aliens that don't understand sex consent?, Come Eating, Complete, Creepily-Happily Ever After, Dark, Darkfic, Dog gets hurt but not killed, Dubious Consent, F/M, Interspecies Relationship(s), Interspecies Sex, Loneliness, Loss of Virginity, Painful Sex, Protein, Reylo Darkfic Anthology, Size Difference, Size Kink, Under the Skin AU, Weird Fluff, Weirdness, bus driver ben, dog gets hurt but survives, let me know, vengeance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-31
Updated: 2019-08-31
Packaged: 2020-07-31 09:08:04
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,325
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20112622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fear_of_being_bitten/pseuds/fear_of_being_bitten
Summary: COMPLETE.  READ THE TAGS- DARK!**************************************Alien Rey been sent to Earth as a replacement.  She trolls the streets at night searching for men to harvest.  She's a hunter on her world, but here she is the bait.A bus driver catches her eye one night– a strong man with a soft smile.  He's kind to the weak and old.  He gets under her skin and she thinks of him.  Rey wants to know why.Maybe Ben will teach her.~~~A weird/fluff, creepily-happily ever after mashup of the films "Under the Skin" and "Paterson."For the Reylo Darkfic Anthology, under AU Vengeance.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Riri19911](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Riri19911/gifts).

> Thanks to my multiple friend beta readers who were kind and supportive during this arduous process.
> 
> This work is inspired primarily by the movie version "Under the Skin" from the book by Michel Faber. This AU is twisted up to provide a happier ending for that alien.
> 
> Also, Malevolent Reverie for her alien Rey in "Pale Blue Dot" that kicked off this idea. 
> 
> Gifted to Riri who encouraged me to try it! :D 
> 
> +++
> 
> If you like this interspecies loved affair, please read the masterpiece "The Pull to the Light" by HarpiaHarpyja. It's a stunning accomplishment and hauntingly beautiful and sad.
> 
> Read it here https://archiveofourown.org/works/16447733/chapters/38514536.

The air is too thick. 

It’s the first thing Rey notices climbing down from the transport. Humid, water-infused, clinging to each crevice of her throat. It would restrict her ability to hunt properly, but Rey is not here to hunt. 

She’s the bait.

The two harvesters, males wearing shells with red hair and blonde, lead her to the back of a white van. Inside is a female lying face up, legs splayed loosely. The one Rey was sent to replace.

She kneels down beside her. The only sound is the ragged breath barely escaping her lips. Rey stares into blue eyes that grow milkier by the moment. It’s strange to see color in eyes, at home they are all matte black, and Rey cocks her head. Not from pity– she does not know pity– but to get a better look at her new reflection. A single drop of moisture escapes the eyelid and slips down the female’s cheek. 

The breath stops. Rey begins stripping off clothing– boots, the remnants of torn stockings, a short denim skirt and black tank. Rey’s breasts are smaller, she doesn’t need the bra. The underwear are missing. The man who did this must’ve taken them. 

Once she’s dressed, Rey returns to the front of the van. The red-haired leader drives to a forest outside of town. Only living things can be harvested, so they set fire to the body under a canopy of tall trees to destroy it. 

The distant city skyline bleeds amber light up into the inky-black sky. The night is starless. There are no constellations to remind Rey of just how far she’s come.

The fire grows hot as flesh is converted to fuel. Rey steps back, her new skin sensitive to the foreign feeling of heat. The orange and red flames lick up higher, seeming to stretch for the sky in a final, futile attempt to reach for home.

Rey knows better. There’s no going home now.

+++

After the sun sets, the dark corners spread like stains on the pavement. People flock to bright and noisy places. They drink and become even weaker. 

Rey knows her purpose. She comes out of the house at night and drives the van. She searches.

Her empty fingers twitch in her lap, missing the weight of her weapons. A hunter by designation and instinct, her new purpose bores her. There’s no sport in it.

Rey spots a man walking alone and unsteady on the edge of the road. She pulls up beside him and rolls down the window.

“Excuse me, I’m lost. Can you help?” Rey flashes a smile that shows off her bright, white teeth.

The man turns with a frown that vanishes when he sees her. He’s tall and thin, with sandy hair and a checkered shirt half-untucked. He awkwardly leans on the door.

“Sure, sweetheart, where you going?”

Rey hands him a slip of paper with the address. He nods and his red-rimmed eyes trace up and down her body. She spreads her thighs wider on the seat to show him more.

“I can take you there if you want, doll.”

“Please.” She unlocks the passenger side door, and he climbs inside. Rey drives in the direction of the house.

“You new around here?” 

“Yes,” Rey replies, keeping her eyes on the road. She hates the talking the most. Meaningless, empty words. 

“Yeah, I can tell. Where ya from?” 

She can tell he’s watching her from the corner of her eye without turning. “Far away. You haven’t heard of it.”

The man laughs. He doesn’t care where she’s from. It’s a pointless game, an irritating pattern of human speech. “So, what do you do for fun?” Rey says. If he talks, she won’t need to. Men like to talk about what they like. She only needs to smile and nod.

He talks until they arrive at the house on a quiet, suburban street. From the outside, it looks like all the others. Rey takes his hand to lead him inside. Words are unnecessary now. 

They climb the stairs to the room that is waiting for him. Rey locks the door and peels off her shirt. The man’s eyes drop to her bare chest, and he licks his lips. He moves quickly to strip off his own shirt, but Rey has already started walking backwards slowly, leading him deeper into the room. He follows.

The man doesn’t notice how cold the room is, or how dark. How smooth and wet the walls are, or how the ground under his feet begins to sink. 

Layers strip off. The man’s pants drop and the hard organ between his legs bounces free. It guides him. The air is infused with chemicals that keep his focus single-mindedly on her. 

The man won’t stop now– none of them will ever stop_ – _ not when his feet start to sink down and down, and not when the cold liquid beneath the floor laps at his thighs and then his hips. His arms reach out, yearning to touch her, but Rey stays just out of reach on the surface. The man lowers steadily down into the black-tar liquid as if walking down a ramp until his head disappears entirely. He joins the others in the holding tank.

Rey stops. The harvesters will do the rest. She gathers the clothing and leaves.

She’ll continue the collection until dawn, then she’ll feed and rest until the next sundown.

It’s too easy.

  
  



	2. Chapter 2

Time feels different here. It slides and loops. Rey’s not sure how much has passed since she was sent. 

The repetition of her nights dulls her senses. She misses the freedom of the hunt, the thrill when she achieves submission and feels a life draining away under her hands. There is no challenge here. Duty demands she follows her assigned purpose and nothing else.

Rey begins observing people out of boredom. She studies how they speak, how they touch and exchange small glances. It’s a foreign language she doesn’t understand. She’s curious.

She sits inside a shopping mall and tries food for the first time. Ice cream. It’s cold, which is welcome, but the sugar and fat make her sick. She retches in the bathroom and returns to sit in the food court. People pass by, all shapes and varieties, a sea of faces and bodies.

There’s weakness everywhere. The very young, the old and infirm, small furry animals being walked on leashes. The stronger ones care for the weak things here. It’s illogical. On her world, only power is rewarded. Those who aren’t useful are harvested for resources.

This place puzzles her. 

That night, Rey parks across from a covered bus shelter to wait. She’s most successful collecting in the hours after midnight. The van air conditioner is turned to high, but it can never be cold enough for her here. She shifts in her seat, skin itching on the inside.

A city bus stops across the street. It’s a beacon of primary colors lit up like a lantern from within. An old woman struggles to rise from the bench and lift a heavy bag made of paper. She’s frail. Useless. 

Rey watches.

The bus doors swing open, and the driver walks outside. He says something to the old woman and takes the bag from her hands. His other hand cups an elbow to help her up the stairs.

Rey’s gaze is fixed solely on him. He’s a large man in his prime,  _ strong, _ with wide shoulders that stretch the blue fabric of his uniform. His hand swallows the woman’s elbow entirely. The driver’s size alone triggers interest, and Rey’s instincts buzz awake.

Once the driver’s seated, he looks in Rey’s direction and for a moment their eyes meet. His long face is angular, the pale skin a sharp contrast to his dark eyes and hair. He stares at her, and Rey stares back. Then he smiles faintly and pulls away.

Rey harvests three that night. In the time between, her mind returns to the bus driver and his large hand on the old woman. To the strangely soft smile that seems to betray his large body. Rey doesn’t know why she thinks of him. 

+++

The air is too thick.

Her hearts pump faster to remove the excess oxygen from her blood. It’s a hostile environment, and her organs are struggling to adapt. She can feel threads of connections twisting together under her skin, binding her in places with the shell. Rey itches where she can’t scratch. 

The harvesters stay inside, they aren’t exposed as she is. That must be why they send replacement females regularly. Her body is realigning inside, but Rey knows not to say anything. They’ll only replace her sooner.

Rey has strange thoughts and feelings that she doesn’t understand. 

She parks every night to watch the bus driver. At first she thinks she will harvest him, like the others, but the thought twists her stomach. She likes to watch him. She wonders what his voice sounds like.

The discarded jeans hold things– papers, dollars, keys and coins. Traces of a world she doesn’t know. Rey collects these things and keeps them in the glove box of the van. Preparing.

+++

Rey wakes one night with an ache in her chest. It doesn’t go away even when she rubs it. They’ll replace her if they know. Too soon, her time is running out too soon. She’s not ready to go yet. 

The sun sets. Her night begins.

Avoiding the eyes of the harvesters, Rey walks to the van as usual. She drives aimlessly through the city, her mind a blank, taking in the movement and color of people.

There’s so much she doesn’t understand yet. Rey stops at an intersection. A man and woman walk in front of the van holding hands. The woman is carrying an infant strapped to her front. The throb in Rey’s chest grows, as if her hearts are swelling. She doesn’t understand this pain, but she wants to. 

If she does this, there’s no turning back. But Rey already knows she’ll never go home.

Rey decides. 

She drives to the bus stop and parks. Rey gathers the slips of paper and coins from the glovebox. She locks the keys inside. They’ll find the van before they’ll be able to track her.

Rey waits at the bus shelter. 

The bus arrives, and she is surprised by the flurry of energy rising when she sees him behind the wheel. Her hearts thump against her ribs. The anticipation feels like the start of a hunt.

She’s the last one to climb the stairs. Her senses are so honed that she can scent him already– a combination of spice and soap, the human tang of sweat and salt. Seated, he’s at her eye-level. A big man,  _ a challenge.  _ Rey’s eyes dart over his face taking in the features up close after so long watching– long nose, high cheekbones, full lips, a scattering of moles and a small scar. 

There’s a flash of recognition across his face and a soft smile blooms. Coils of energy tighten in her gut as excitement and hunger blend. There are other confusing sensations she cannot identify, but a familiar energy thrums through her– the need to conquer and claim. 

“Good evening,” the driver says. His name badge reads  _ B. Solo.  _ “Fare, Miss?” The voice she’s been waiting to hear is deep and rich, with a hint of low vibration and obvious power restrained. Rey holds out bills in the palm of her hand. 

“Oh. That’s too much. Um, here–“ He picks out a few and then reaches into the clear box to give her coins back. His hands are big, his touch warm on her skin. He smiles at her again, and Rey tries to mimic it back at him. His eyebrows lift.

A voice behind them says, “Let’s go, buddy!”

“Yeah, yeah, we’re going,” Solo says, throwing a glance back. “Hold your horses.” He turns to Rey, eyes gentle again. “Have a seat, Miss.”

Rey takes one nearby to watch him. The night goes on. He periodically rises to help the old or a woman swollen with offspring up the stairs. He hums to himself sometimes, so quietly that Rey’s not sure he realizes he’s doing it. 

Up close, his eyes are dark gold and liquid like oil. Sometimes they cross with hers in the rearview mirror. Each time, his mouth crooks up in a crooked smile. 

It’s late when Solo shuts off the service light to mark the end of the shift. “Final stop, folks. Careful going home.”

The few remaining riders exit while Rey stays in place. 

Solo turns and hooks a thick arm over the back of his seat. He presses his lips together and looks at her expectantly. 

Rey doesn’t move.

The moment stretches between them as pliable as elastic. She watches the friendly expression fade into something uncertain. His smile wavers and he swallows, his long throat bobbing. A muscle along his jaw twitches.

“I’ve seen you before. Watching me.” The voice he uses is surprisingly unsure for someone of his size.

Rey says nothing. 

“Where you going?”

She shakes her head. 

His brows crinkle. “Don’t you have anywhere to go?”

She shakes her head again.

He shifts in his seat. “I can take you somewhere. Um– not in this, but my car.” 

“I want to go with you,” Rey says.

Solo looks nervous. He exhales through pursed lips. He rubs his thumb and middle finger together and looks down at the ground. 

He brushes a hand through his hair. It was fine before, but now it’s ruffled. When he turns back, there’s a wash of pink on the high points of his cheeks and the tips of his ears. 

“Are you sure?” His look is a question, but the words he’s speaking are not the actual question, she thinks. There’s some other meaning hidden underneath. 

Rey stares directly into his eyes and nods. 

Solo blinks, and the smile is back. “All right. If you change your mind, tell me. Okay?”

“Okay,” Rey parrots back. She knows she won’t. 

Solo drives them back to the yard on the empty bus. Rey follows him to his car, an old blue sedan in the corner of the employee lot. She notices his fingers tremble slightly as he connects the key to the lock. How strange that a large man is so uncertain. It’s intriguing and absurd. He holds the door open for her.

Once he’s seated behind the wheel, he turns to her quickly. “Oh, damn. I don’t even know your name. I’m Ben. Ben Solo.”

He holds out a hand. Rey looks down at it.

“Rey.” It’s the closest thing to her name in his language. His hand hovers between them, and she tilts her head. He pulls it back and licks his lips, then rubs it on his thigh.

“Ray? That’s funny, because I thought of you as sunshine.” The pink returns to his cheeks and he looks down. “Cause you brightened my night whenever I saw you.” 

In the enclosed space of his car, Ben seems even larger. An awkward fit as thick, long limbs that are designed to move are contracted in a small container. Rey looks to where his hand rubs against the firm fabric of his thigh. 

“Are you hungry? Want to get coffee, Rey?”

“No.” 

He nods and starts the engine. Rey looks out the window at the stream of light and color that pass them by. Ben turns on the radio to fill the silence. The car skips between the bright pools of light dropped by street lamps on the black asphalt.

They leave the city behind.

  
  



	3. Chapter 3

He lives in the woods on an unmarked road. Ben turns onto gravel and the tires crunch beneath them. Tall trees line the road like a living wall. The headlights slice through the thick darkness until they land on a log cabin sitting alone in a clearing.

“It’s not much, but it’s home.” Ben gives a sheepish grin and cuts the engine. When he opens the door, the steady buzz of insects rolls over them in waves. She hasn’t been in the woods since they burned the body, and her muscles tense.

Her new eyes are very poor in the moonlight. Ben takes her elbow to lead her to his front door. She’s not accustomed to touch. He’s gentle, but it still makes her skin prick. Rey’s fist around nothing and she misses her weapons. She’s vulnerable. 

Ben unlocks the door and it swings open in a rush of movement. A big, furry creature bounds out and barks, rushing around them. Rey jerks back and hisses in alarm. 

“Down! Down, Chewie! Sorry, he’s just happy to see you.” Ben grabs the animal by the collar to pull him back. “He’s friendly. Too friendly, actually.” 

The beast wiggles it’s rear and licks Rey’s hand. The wet slithering is a familiar feeling to home. She relaxes her shoulders. 

“That’s enough. Let’s go, buddy.” Ben pushes it away and Chewie bounds off, running happy circles in the yard.

They walk inside Ben’s home. It’s one large room. There’s not much inside, only the essentials– a small table with two chairs near the kitchen, a couch and chair by the fireplace on the other side. A clock marks the seconds loudly from the wall. No sign of anyone else but him.

Ben drops his keys on the counter that separates the room. He sweeps dishes into the sink. “Sorry, I don’t get company much.” 

“It’s okay, Ben.”

He stops and looks at her, his skin turning redder after she uses his name. This must be embarrassment. How someone so large could be so timid is a puzzle.

“I don’t have much to drink. Maybe a bottle of wine somewhere. Are you thirsty?”

“No.” Rey doesn’t drink liquids.

He puts his hands in his pockets. “Okay. Can I get you anything?”

Rey considers the question carefully. She weighs her response against what she knows of their language and this particular man.

“No. I just want to be with you.”

His cheeks seem to burn. Her reply must be correct to stimulate such a response.

“You want to stay here tonight?”

Rey nods.

Ben calls Chewie in and locks the front door. He leads her to his bedroom and pulls open drawers to hand her a folded white t-shirt and grey sweatpants much too large for her. He cannot meet her eyes.

“For you to sleep in.” 

She thinks he will touch her, like the others try to do. But instead he leads her across the hall to a smaller bedroom. “It’s late, you must be tired. If you need anything, I’m right here.”

Rey nods. Ben nibbles his lower lip, but doesn’t try to touch her. She wonders why he’s so different. 

“Okay. Goodnight, Rey.”

“Goodnight, Ben.”

The door shuts with a click. She strips bare and then puts on his shirt. The pants won’t stay up, so she drops them away. 

She sits on the bed in the dark, spine straight as steel. Listening.

She slowly cranes her head in his direction and attunes her hearing to the faint breath on the other side of the wall. Panting. At first she thinks it’s the creature, but there’s a moan that can only be human. Rey gets up and follows the sound.

Her feet are silent on the wooden beams in the hallway as she comes to a stop outside Ben’s room. She presses an ear to the door. There’s rhythmic sounds matching the steady breath. She’s curious.

Rey slowly opens the door and steps inside.

Ben is lying on the bed in only boxer shorts that are pushed below his hips. His eyes are squeezed closed with a look of agony pinching his face. The roped muscles of his arms and taut chest are straining as he grips his organ, flushed red and swollen, in his fist. He’s pumping his hand up and down along his length, full lips pursed, and the bed rattles with the effort. 

Rey’s rooted to the spot as she scents him in the air, salty and hot. A curl of heat spirals in her gut, unfamiliar.

His hand moves faster, and Rey watches the flesh shift under his grip. Her gaze rises to his face. The exertion looks painful and his expression is contorted, but a whimper escapes his lips. It makes her toes curl into the carpet. 

This is pleasure. An aching pleasure. Rey wants to know this feeling. She floats closer like a shadow.

His eyes are shut tight as his hand pumps up and down. A tiny bead of moisture forms on the blunt tip. Rey takes another step and leans forward to swipe it off with her fingers.

Ben’s eyes snap open.  _ “Rey,”  _ he gasps. His hand slows as he watches her lift the fingers into her mouth and suck. Salty and tangy, like him. Her eyes close to savor his essence.

Ben pumps again and his hips jerk up. He moans as stripes of white fluid expel across his abdomen in thick strands. Rey stares into his eyes until he finishes and drops his head heavy on the pillow. He sighs and wipes a hand over his face.

“I’m sorry,” he whispers. Rey places a hand on his heaving chest and on his thigh to hold him still. 

“Wha–what’re you–”

She opens her mouth and laps at his skin. The substance is viscous and full of protein. The salt is undesirable, but not revolting. She begins to drink it down. 

_ “Oh, God,” _ Ben exhales. A shaking hand cups the back of her head with barely a touch as Rey licks his skin clean. The buzzy calm of satiation goes to her head.

_ “Fuck,”  _ Ben says as he watches her with wide eyes.

When she’s done, Rey smacks her lips for the last traces. He cups her cheeks and stares at her. His eyes dance between hers. “Who  _ are _ you?” 

Ben lifts his head and tries to draw her down to his face. Rey resists, pulling back and digging her fingers into his skin. Her upper lip curls into a snarl showing a tiny bit of fang. 

He stops but doesn’t release her. “I’m just going to kiss you, Rey,” Ben says.

She frowns. “Kiss?”

“Like this,” He brings his lips just outside of hers and holds. Their breath mixes together and it’s hot, but not unpleasant. When she doesn’t react, he brushes his lips softly against hers. 

Rey’s not used to such close proximity. Her only touch is to fight and kill, so she must suppress the urge to bite. Her nails dig deeper into his chest muscle as she forces herself to hold still. She wants to know this feeling. 

He fits his mouth over hers. Rey flinches when his tongue traces her lips. Ben holds her cheeks steady when she huffs, and her mouth opens slightly wider. He takes advantage and slips inside. It’s an odd sensation, and a chain reaction of heat curls up her spine. 

He’s so large, she’s not sure she could wrestle him into submission bare-handed. The thought makes her blood rush faster. Her mind is a blur of violence and hunger and need, trying to wrestle with the new instincts and sensations. Rey arches her back and rests against his warm skin. Ben makes a low sound in his chest with a pleasant vibration. 

He abruptly pulls back, panting. “We have to stop, or I won’t be able to.” Rey doesn’t know what that means. He guides her to lay down against his torso, cradled against his side under a large, heavy arm. Ben arranges the bedding around them. 

He falls asleep quickly with a steady breath. Rey listens to the stern drumbeat of his pulse under her cheek. His heat feels like it’s burning through her layers.

He’s not like the others, but she thinks he would still be easy to kill, if she needed to.

  
  



	4. Chapter 4

After the second night, Ben doesn’t ask again if Rey has any place to go. He knows she doesn’t. He tells her she can stay with him for as long as she wants.

“I was lonely before you,” Ben says quietly as they walk in the woods, his hands in pockets. “With only me and Chewie.”

“That is two. Not alone,” Rey says, tilting her head. Ben is teaching her words. He reads her books and poems about concepts that don’t exist in her world. _ Empathy. Happiness. Loneliness. Love. _

“Lonely,” he looks at her and smiles. “I was_ lonely _ before you. But not anymore.”

Ben knows Rey comes from far away, but not exactly how far. He doesn’t press her to say. 

He says he has no other people he cares about. His phone rings one morning. “Hi, Ma,” he says, raising a finger to Rey. He walks out on the front porch and closes the door. 

Rey turns over the back of the couch and leans her chin on her stacked hands. She listens and watches him through the window. 

_ A girl. _

_ Special, yeah. _

_ Not yet, Ma. _

_ I am. I really am. _

Rey thinks the look on his face is happiness. She wonders what will happen if she stays with him. How long she can last here.

+++

Rey knows Ben’s not stupid. He realizes something is very different about her. He watches her when he thinks she won’t notice. Sometimes with a smile, other times with his eyebrows drawn close together and a look of worry. 

One afternoon, Chewie proudly carries back several squirrel tails he dug up from her pile in the woods. Scraps she hid from her hunts while Ben is at work. He turns them over in his hands as his jaw works. He says nothing, but he must know.

Food is a give away. And the fact she doesn’t drink.

Each night before his shift, Ben cooks two plates and they sit down at the small table together. He talks while she pushes things from one side of her plate to the other. Too much fat, too much salt. She likes the sound of his voice. When she smiles, she likes how Ben smiles back.

Very early in the morning, Ben flicks on the kitchen light to find Rey stooped over the garbage can eating eggshells and chicken bones. Chewie licks up the scraps that fall from her greasy fingers onto the linoleum floor.

Ben’s pale face grows paler. Rey sucks her fingers clean of the marrow.

“Come back to bed,” he says softly. She does.

+++

Rey sleeps very little compared to him. She’s awake for hours nearly stifled by his heat. When his eyes open finally, her hearts beat faster as he pulls her into his arms to burrow into her neck. She’s getting used to his touch and his heat, the feel of his large body holding hers down.

Ben lets her watch him touch himself.

Rey puts a hand on his chest to feel the firm muscle underneath, the kinetic power building with each stroke. The tendons in his neck pull taut with effort, his small gasps make her squirm. Her pulse starts to race along with his. After his release, he lays back on the pillow and opens his arms wide for her. Rey tastes him as he combs her hair back with fingertips. Her eyelids flutter in satisfaction. 

Ben holds her so tight sometimes it’s hard to breathe. Her lungs, or maybe her hearts, are collapsing inwards, cleaving together. Strands are woven and braided together, binding and connecting her layers as she adapts.

She’s becoming something new, something other. More like him.

+++

Ben will be back from work soon. Rey curls up on the couch with Chewie and watches television. She cocks her head and mimics the women she sees, how they touch the men. She watches them coming together to mate in fascination.

Ben has never pushed her to try this. Rey thinks she is ready now. 

She takes a freezing cold shower, her favorite. She dries her hair and spreads things on her skin that smell nice. She stands nude in front of the mirror, admiring her female body, curious about what it will feel like.

When Ben comes home, she’s standing by the door. Chewie runs outside to run circles in greeting.

“Hey,” Ben says, “Missed you.”

“Missed you,” Rey repeats. She touches his cheek.

“I thought about you all night.” His expression is as warm as his skin.

She knows she is ready. “Come,” she says, leading him upstairs by the hand.

Rey closes the door of his room and turns to him. She strips off her shirt and backs up to the bed, beckoning him. His eyes pour down her body, sending waves of heat along their path.

He meets her eyes again. “God, you’re so beautiful, Rey.” Her world has no concept of beautiful. It’s another word Ben’s taught her. 

Wide palms wrap around her waist. “You’re the prettiest woman in the world.” Rey grasps his biceps as he draws her to his chest. He kisses down her throat. “Ever since I saw you, I couldn’t get you out of my head.”

She infected him like he’s infected her, then. Her fingers dig into his shoulders as he rubs her back. “I couldn’t believe it when you wanted to come with me. It was like a dream come true.” 

Ben nips at her throat, folding her skin between his teeth. Rey feels a stream of hot pleasure connect between her thighs and her pulse. She has the urge to claim, the same energy as a hunt.

“I’ll take care of you. Don’t worry,” he whispers. 

Ben kisses behind her ear and a low moan bubbles out of her throat. Fingers twist into his hair and yank. The feelings are a storm of instinct and need. They ignite into a fire that blazes in her blood and Rey pulls his mouth to hers.

Ben grunts and squeezes her waist tighter. He’s heat, pure heat, and it burns to touch him, but also not to touch him. Her hunger is fueling his. Ben drags her down to the bed.

He uses a hand to scoop up a breast into his mouth. Rey cries out and arches her back at the shock of sensation. It feels like electricity coursing down to her core.

“Shh, baby, it’s okay.” Ben plays with her nipple, biting tenderly. She rocks against his mouth and the newness of the pleasure. He kisses across to the other nipple, swirling his tongue before sucking it inside. Rey’s hips lift to push against his, seeking more touch. 

The building pressure inside her is a torment. She doesn’t understand it. Rey whines and squeezes empty fists, her instincts blurring between the desire for passion or for violence. 

“Ben!” Rey cries out, seeking relief. 

“Shh. I’ll help. It’s okay.”

He slides down her body to split her thighs around his wide shoulders. He holds her hips still. “I’ll teach you.” He kisses inside her thighs and then his mouth lands on the space in-between. 

Rey gasps. A wave of blinding and intense sensation rips through her like an electric shock. It’s too new, too much stimuli. Rey feels like she’s being turned inside out. 

She whimpers, a weak sound to her ears. He presses his mouth deeper into her center. His tongue works between her folds, teasing and searching. “Just relax. Let it come,” he whispers against her flesh. 

His thick fingers press her into the mattress when the alien pleasure overtakes her. Rey bucks her hips and thrashes. Ben keeps his mouth on her until she wiggles to get free. He doesn’t let her go far, lifting to arrange her in his lap.

Ben plants his feet on the ground and wraps her trembling legs around his hips. “Shh.” He kisses her cheeks. He loops her loose arms around his shoulders. “I’ve got you, baby. It’s okay.”

His hard organ is pressed between them. She’s slick and soft now. He cups her bottom and presses her into him. They look down as he starts to rub her up and down his length. Ben’s breath is ragged.

“It’s gonna hurt a little,” he says. He kisses her lips lightly. “It always does the first time.”

Rey nods. She’s not afraid of pain. He rocks against her to spread her slick onto him. Then he lifts her enough to fit himself just inside her entrance. He bites his lower lip and eases in only the tip. Her body begins to stretch around him, and she digs her nails into his shoulders.

Something is wrong. The anatomy is wrong. The pieces do not fit properly because this is not her purpose. She’s too small. 

The pain starts, a ripping fire that makes her cry out. Ben holds still, panting. “You can do it, baby,” Ben says, through barely parted teeth. She closes her eyes and nods quickly. She wants to. He pushes in deeper. It burns and feels like he’s tearing his way into her with fire.

He’s halfway inside when she starts to panic, scratching at him and baring teeth. He wraps his big arms around her to hold her steady.

“Shh. Rey.” Her breath slows as she whimpers into his shoulder. So weak. “It’s okay.”

The sound of his voice makes her settle. Rey shifts her hips. She wants to do this. The pain rips through her, but she settles down lower with a whimper. Ben kisses her temple. She sucks in a breath and with a final ripping and a cry, he’s fully seated inside her.

Rey’s trembling and Ben may be, too. Her body re-aligns for him. She drops her forehead to his shoulder and it’s suddenly wet there. He strokes her back and holds her. After a few moments, Ben draws her head back to look at him.

“You did it, baby, I know you could. You were made for me.”

Maybe she was. She’s fitted to him now. His thumbs brush away the moisture on her cheeks. The pain is a throb now as she adapts. Ben cups her bottom in his hands. He slowly lifts her a little and lowers her again, testing it out. The friction burns and Rey hisses. But soon she loosens.

“You’re doing so good,” he murmurs. He kisses her again on the lips. Her body starts to relax around the intrusion. There’s some blood, dark red and black. Ben looks down to where they are joined and back to her with wide eyes. His squeezes her bottom, spreading her open for him.

Ben’s trying to be gentle, but he has a hunter inside, too. She can see it in his eyes. She wants to unleash it and feel his power, revel in him holding her down. She scratches along his chest, long stripes of red, and he cries out and looks at her with surprise. She bites her lower lip and an understanding passes between their eyes.

Rey struggles to push away from him, and he flips her over onto her back. He rolls on top of her, panting, and finds her eyes. She scratches his chest again, and he pins her hands down. He dives for her mouth and she kisses him and writhes against him.

Ben lifts her thigh and lets himself back in with a groan. He presses her down, and Rey moans in pleasure. He starts pounding into her and she bucks her hips to meet him, the adrenaline and instinct drowning out the pain.

His pace quickens. _ “Fuck,” _ he exhales, slapping his hips into hers, digging in deep. “God, you’re perfect.” 

Ben looks straight into her eyes as if he could see what’s underneath. As if he can see the real her. 

Her body is latching onto his, holding him close inside. Ben pounds into her faster and a drop of his sweat lands on her cheek. She licks it off. The sweet heat of his power coils in her gut. She feels like she’ll explode into flames. 

Ben drops his forehead on the pillow next to her as his thrusts grow erratic. _ “I love you,” _ he whispers. _ “I love you.” _

Rey bites into the meat of his shoulder, hard enough that her fang draws blood. She drinks it down as Ben shudders and stops, filling her up as her body spasms around him. He’s seeping in under her skin, and Rey feels every pulse.

He collapses and folds her up under him. His heavy, hot limbs cage her next to his chest as he curls around her. He loves her. The last connection between her layers knits together.

Rey is something new, now. She was made for Ben.


	5. Chapter 5

Rey wakes in the dark. Chewie is barking downstairs. There’s a yelp and a loud thud.

She sits up suddenly and the bed next to her is cold. Something is very wrong. Her nerves are prickling as her eyes search the room.

She hears it downstairs– her language. They’ve found her.

_ Ben. _They surprised him getting ready for work. 

Rey bursts from the bed and into the dark hallway. She cocks her head and listens. There are two sets of heavy footsteps downstairs, not three. She feels fear. Another thing Ben has taught her.

Rey tiptoes down the stairs in the shadows. She sees the harvesters carrying Ben by the shoulders and legs out the front door. He’s not moving. A whimper calls her attention to the far wall. Chewie is laying on his side, feet trembling, blood dripping from his mouth. They’ve hurt him.

Rey’s blood surges. Her vision is nothing but black and red.

She goes to the kitchen and chooses two large knives from the butcher’s block. She follows them to the van with her blades tucked behind her back.

It’s a full moon and her pupils dilate to let in more light. They’re loading Ben in the back to harvest him, so he must still be alive. They close the door, probably to return to collect her.

She’s waiting.

“Rey,” the leader says. 

“What did you do to him?” 

“The man? In the truck, like the others.”

“No, Chewie.”

The leader tilts his head. His light blue eyes look like twin stars under the moon.

“The dog? I silenced it.”

She looks down at his boots. One glistens with Chewie’s blood. Rey’s fury rises like smoke. _ Vengeance– _ another word Ben has taught her. Her hands grip the blades tight.

There are two of them, but they are not hunters. They are no match. With a flash of silver, she surges and slices the leader’s throat down to the bone. Black ooze pours out of the gash along with blood. He gurgles and falls to his knees, his face frozen in shock. 

The blonde turns and runs. He’s not as fast as her, he hasn’t adapted like Rey has.

She chases after him and dives to slice the tendon behind his heel. He yells and crumples to the ground. Rey rolls onto her feet and kneels on his back to hold him steady. Three quick stabs through the back. Kidney, liver, lung. He coughs and spits out blood as it gurgles in his throat. Rey kicks him over with a foot and his pale eyes blink up at her. They’re growing as wide and milky as the silver moon hanging above the clearing.

Rey’s eyes are set down at the earth. She plunges the long blade beneath his sternum and twists. He silences.

Rey stands, covered in gore, and walks back to the leader with her dripping blades. He’s still holding his throat uselessly. It is a fatal wound, even if slow. The air is too thick for him to make it long. He’s already weak.

“Traitor,” he sputters, spitting blood. 

Rey narrows her eyes. “I hold no allegiance to you.”

“You betray your kind! For animals!”

With a flick of the wrist, she strips the skin from his arm. His pink skin peels back to reveal shiny black, his true skin. Her true skin. A few more slices uncovers more. It will hasten his demise and his suffering.

He coughs.

“What happens when they find out what you are?” He smiles bitterly, eyes growing unfocused.

“He already knows.”

A few more slices down his back and his shell slips free and folds down. He emerges like a snake molting out of skin. The moon reflects off him and makes him look like living starlight.

He will die on this planet that orbits the sun. Alone. 

Rey is no longer alone.

She stabs the leader in the chest twice, once with each blade. He keels over backwards and gapes up at the stars. Rey leaves him and returns to Chewie. She wraps him in a blanket and carries him to the van.

He laps at her arm feebly. Chewie knows what she is, he has always known what she is.

Ben is breathing inside, steady and solid. She lays Chewie on one side of him and lays on his other. Ben is too heavy for her to lift, so she curls up next to his warmth. She will wait for him.

When he wakes, they’ll care for Chewie. She’ll show him the harvesters. He’ll see what she really is and will help her destroy the bodies so they’ll never be found again. 

Rey can feel herself growing stronger next to his warmth. She’s something else now. She knows Ben will help her, because he loves her.

Rey closes her eyes. She is home.

+++

Days fall into an easy rhythm now with Ben. They no longer worry about being found. It must have been years, but Rey's lost track of how long she’s lived in the cabin because before doesn't matter anymore.

She was wrong about the air. They didn't replace the females because they grew weak, they replaced them because they grew too strong. She's adapted. She’s faster than she ever was back home.

After a year, her shell caught on a sharp tree branch. The skin ripped loose on her arm from wrist to shoulder. Once she saw the gash, Rey knew it was time. It peeled free and she stepped out into the night air fresh and slick. Her human skin dropped at her feet in a loose pile. 

She'll miss the long hair and the colored eyes. What will Ben think? Rey walked back to the cabin quietly. She went up to their bed to wait for him to get home. 

After his shift when found her, Ben’s hands started to shake. The look of fear in his warm eyes hurt her more than anything.

"Wha-what happened?" he managed finally, eyes roaming her fresh skin.

"This is who I am." Her matte black eyes have never produced tears before now so the moisture surprises her. She's changed.

Ben stared at her. The moon shone through their window, casting her slick skin in shadows and starlight. His lip quivered but he walked closer. He pulled back the covers and she opened her arms to him.

He said nothing.

+++

Ben always drives the night shift now, so that’s when Rey hunts. She blends in so well to the void of the woods. Chewie stays by her side, but he knows to keep out of her way.

In the daylight hours, they stay in bed. Ben learns to cook her meat plain. The first few days after she dropped her shell, he could barely dare to look at her directly. Those days are long forgotten now. He’s adapted, too.

Rey knows this is happiness. Ben’s taught her. 

She wonders if she’ll ever be able to bear his children, if her adaptation will be complete. She wonders what combinations they could create together, but Ben says she’s all he needs.

It’s just the two of them, now.

+++

THE END


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